


Butterfly Effect

by mercy_angel_09



Series: Amorralok Week 2012 [7]
Category: Avatar: The Legend of Korra
Genre: Fraternal Polyandry, Multi, OT3, someone hit the rest button, time for a do-over
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-18
Updated: 2012-12-18
Packaged: 2017-11-21 12:03:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,889
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/597539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mercy_angel_09/pseuds/mercy_angel_09
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When given a second chance you make the most of it. Why squander such a precious gift?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Butterfly Effect

**Author's Note:**

> This is long and rambly and written while I was watching Seahawks football and I have no idea if makes sense. So…yeah. The brothers get a second chance to do it right and be happy. But sometimes you gotta hit rock bottom before you can start going back up.

The last thing they remember was the boat exploding. It’s why they’re surprised when they wake up in their beds five years prior. Tarrlok has just been named the new representative from the Northern Water Tribe at thirty-two. The city can’t stop talking about it.

Noatak is confused at first, waking in his apartment and unsure of what’s going on. He dresses and goes out to buy a paper, noting that he’s been given a second second chance. There’s just one thing he has to do.

Tarrlok absently pokes at his breakfast with his spoon, pushing the sea prunes to the bottom of the bowl and watching them float back to the surface before repeating the process. He doesn’t know what to think except that there are spiritual shenanigans afoot.

“Councilman, there’s a gentleman here to see you,” the butler announces.

Tarrlok groans. “Whoever it is, tell them to go away.”

“He said you might say that and to say that it’s a Noatak of the Northern Water Tribe.”

His head snaps up. “Show him in immediately.” He’s on his feet and striding towards the door as Noatak walks in. He isn’t sure if he wants to hug or slug his brother.

“We need to talk,” Noatak says by way of greeting, except Tarrlok agrees. At this point greetings are meaningless.

They hole up in Tarrlok’s office and turn radio on to muffle their conversation from those that might be interested in listening in. They speak in hushed tones to try and figure out their next move.  Noatak decides to not get involved with the Equalists, instead choosing to work alongside his brother.

Interestingly enough, they find that they make a solid team. Noatak’s inside knowledge of the Equalists means that Tarrlok becomes the savior to the non-benders. But there’s still only so much they can do, and despite their best efforts the Triads continue to give them trouble.

It’s a quiet afternoon when they hear the press conference when Avatar Korra announces her intentions to move to Republic City to continue her Avatar training. The brothers exchange a look.

“What do we do?” Noatak asks. Tarrlok has more experience interacting with the Avatar in mundane situations.

“We go and greet her. We make friends with her.”

“We woo her?”

Tarrlok had wondered. Noatak had babbled about the Avatar as he secured them a boat to leave Republic City in, always coming back to how beautiful she was when she was angry.

“You’re twenty-three years older than her, do you really think that you’re her type?”

“I could be. For that matter, you could be.”

Tarrlok snorts. “Hardly.”

“So we’ll stick to befriending her. She’ll make a powerful ally.”

“We’ll go to Air Temple Island first thing in the morning.”

They hold to that promise, finding Korra being frustrated by the spinning gates. She’s glad for the interruption and sensing a kinship with fellow Water Tribesmen, she instantly bonds with them, especially after Noatak offers to take her to a Pro-Bending match that night. Tenzin is less than thrilled with this, but Tarrlok states that there’s no harm in the Avatar being properly escorted around the city, and either he or his brother would be happy to do just that.

So Korra meets Noatak on the docks and they walk towards the Pro-Bending arena. They watch the first match and Korra has the time of her life, Noatak enjoying her enthusiasm. Between matches she decides she wants to explore and Noatak finds he doesn’t have the heart to tell her no. He thinks they’re doomed when they’re caught in the training room, but that earthbender boy comes by and saves them.

“You’re jealous,” Tarrlok observes later as Noatak goes over the evening’s events. “If I recall correctly, she’s in love with the firebender.”

“The firebender is an idiot,” Noatak mumbles.

“I won’t disagree with you, but he also cares about her.”

Noatak remembers. One doesn’t just forget being lightningbent. “How do I get her to forget about him?”

“He’s about to meet the Sato girl, right? She’ll discover there are other, better options out there.”

“Are you actually suggesting that we make a play for her?” Noatak asks in disbelief. Just a few days ago Tarrlok had been very much against it.

“She’s a little rough around the edges, but that’s easy enough to fix. She’s still young, she’ll mature and she’d be a great match for one of us.”

Or both of us goes unsaid. It wasn’t uncommon for the more remote areas of the Water Tribes to share a spouse, particularly one wife for a pair of brothers if women were scarce.

Neither of them are surprised when Korra instantly bonds with the Fire Ferrets, joining up when their waterbender fails to show up for a match. She’s a little clumsy at first, but then something clicks. Not only does she look like a real Pro-Bender, she’s moving like an airbender as well. Tenzin reluctantly thanks Tarrlok and Noatak for taking Korra to the match.

A few weeks later Tarrlok manages to convince the council to throw a welcome party for Korra under the guise that she is a very important person and that she should be properly introduced to society. She spends most of the night on the arm of either Tarrlok or Noatak. The hurt is obvious in her eyes when Mako introduces her to Asami, so Noatak and Tarrlok take turns distracting her all night with dancing and conversation. Slowly her mood brightens until she’s laughing so hard her sides hurt and she’s leaning just a little too close to whoever is escorting her.

There’s been no news about the Equalists, but Noatak can’t quite shake the feeling that there’s something brewing.

The Pro-Bending finals are approaching and not without its share of problems. Eyes red and puffy, Korra shows up on Tarrlok’s doorstep crying about how she’s messed everything up. They make her a cup of tea and ask her to explain what happened. With fresh tears she confesses to telling Mako how she feels about him and then going out for a fun evening kind-of-date with Bolin, and then she kissed Mako but Bolin saw…

Tarrlok stops her rambling with a question. “Is this going to affect how you play?”

She sniffles pathetically. “I don’t know, but probably. If they drop me from the team I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“They’d be stupid to do that,” Noatak assures her as he puts his hand on her shoulder. She turns her head notices, not for the first time, how close he is and despite his age how good looking he is. Without thinking she closes the distance between them. It surprises him, but he goes with it, enjoying the feeling of her lips against his. He loses track of time until Tarrlok clears his throat. They pull away from each other, a rather fetching blush on her cheeks. Realizing what’s just happened, Noatak stands. “I’ll go make some more tea.”

Shaking his head at his brother’s obviously flustered state, Tarrlok moves to sit beside Korra. “You’re young. Love is confusing and nobody should expect you to have it all figured out at your age. I’m twenty years older than you and I still don’t have it figured out.”

She gives a morose nod. “I feel like an idiot.”

“You’re not an idiot,” Tarrlok assures her as he slides his arm around her shoulder. “Everyone makes mistakes. Even me.” He doesn’t feel a need to explain it. Sometimes it’s just comforting to know that others have screwed up as well.

She leans against him and looks up, noticing that he’s not entirely unattractive as well. He looks down at her, a puzzled expression on his face before he decides to just go for it. For the third time that night Korra is kissed.

“Well, this is an interesting development,” Noatak notes from the doorway. His lips are turned up in an amused smile.

“I…we were just…oh spirits…” Korra groans as she grabs a pillow and buries her face in it.

“Ah, youth,” Noatak says as he places a tray with fresh tea on the table. “Forget Mako. There are better options out there.”

She lowers the pillow and looks between him and Tarrlok. “Like…you?”

“Why not us?” Tarrlok asks.

“And don’t say it’s because we’re old.”

“I don’t think of you guys as old,” she confesses shyly and they both smile.

Well then.

The Pro-Bending finals go off without a hitch, Tarrlok and Noatak sitting with Tenzin and Lin and cheering on the Fire Ferrets loudly. Tarrlok promises an investigation into the Wolfbats after their win and Noatak’s hands itch with the desire to seal the bending of those cheating bastards. The Fire Ferrets celebrate anyway, knowing that they’re the real winners.

The next morning everything changes.

Bodies of Triad members start showing up. They’ve been electrocuted and dumped in places like the city parks and shopping districts. And then it stops being the Triad members and starts being ordinary benders who had done nothing more but gone about their business.

Tarrlok and Noatak have a sneaking suspicion as to who is behind the attacks. They start up a special task force, inviting Korra and her friends to join. Slowly information comes to light, and it threatens to destroy everything the brothers have built.

Hiroshi Sato declares war on Republic City’s benders.

Asami continues to side with the Avatar with grim determination. Korra starts spending an extraordinary amount of time at Tarrlok’s place doing only Spirits knows what. Sometimes she stays there when raids run late, falling sleep sandwiched between the brothers, usually after activities that would cause Tenzin’s head to explode.

Good things don’t last, though.

Eventually the showdown between Hiroshi Sato comes and Korra tries her best to stop them, but Sato’s technology is superior to what any bender can do, even the Avatar. There are heavy losses on both sides and eventually the non-benders are stopped. Tarrlok and Noatak promise to work for the non-benders, just as they have done so for the last five years, but these are people who are angry and looking for revenge. They don’t want empty platitudes.

It’s with a heavy heart that Korra breaks off whatever it is that she has with Tarrlok and Noatak. She has to focus on being the Avatar, she doesn’t have time for distractions.

They understand, they really do, but on the same note they feel it isn’t fair.

She walks out of their lives then, really only seeing them in some sort of public capacity. It’s years before she’s a fully realized Avatar. Years before the brothers see her again.

 She’s a woman when she returns. Gone is what little baby fat she had left, and sharp angles of adolescence have given way to the soft curves of adulthood. She makes a point of going to see them first. There are a few more lines on their faces, their hair starting to be streaked with grey, but their smiles are the same when they see her.

“I’ve come home,” she says and their smiles get bigger.

She’s come home. She’s where she belongs. And they are glad that they were given a second chance. A second chance to be happy. A second chance to get it right.


End file.
